Research is a huge driver in our business, and it's always neat to learn about the such initiatives at turf schools around the region and country. On July 12, over 100 individuals from various sectors of our industry — superintendents, professors, vendors, National Parks Service, lawn care, and more — gathered at the Paint Branch Turfgrass Research Facility in College Park to hear about the latest and greatest coming out of the University of Maryland.
With regard to the research, we learned about an array of projects including:
It was a cool day for mid-July in the Mid-Atlantic region, as it only reached about 94 degrees with high humidity that could make an arm pit stink. But that didn't take away from a great event filled with education, networking, crabs, BBQ, and cornhole.
With regard to the research, we learned about an array of projects including:
- Evaluation of new fungicides to control dollar spot disease and reduce summer stress in creeping bentgrass fairways
- Examining fungicide programs for limiting common diseases on putting green turf in the Mid-Atlantic
- Evaluation of warm season turfgrasses and Best Management Practices to maximize warm season turf performance
- Fertility, mowing, weed, and disease management in tall fescue turfgrass
- Evaluations of cool-season turfgrass cultivars for drought tolerance and low maintenance applications
- Long-term evaluation of strategies to reduce fertilizer use and runoff from lawn turf
Some of these projects (organic inputs) are a response to ongoing pesticide and fertilizer restrictions within Montgomery County and the state of Maryland. I commend the program for keeping up with this work and going above and beyond to create BMPs for managing lawn turf and gather loads of relevant data that is used to educate policymakers. And it's all pretty interesting work.
If you are interested in learning more about these projects, I'm sure Drs. Carroll, Roberts, and Turner would be happy to talk about their research. Also in the news for the day, the program announced the hiring of Geoff Rinehart, turfgrass lecturer, who was most recently the coordinator of the National Arboretum's 'Grass Roots' initiative, which includes a 1.3-acre interactive turfgrass exhibit.
Lastly, a big shout out to the boys of 'The Smoke's on U.' This is a group of industry guys who do competitive BBQ competitions, and provided the mouth-watering aromas and meats for the day. Some of the best brisket I've ever had! Their team consists of Michael Bostian (MAAGCS president; superintendent at Waverly Woods GC), Chris Fernandes (superintendent at Northwest GC), Jeff Snyder (Helena), and Dave Haber (Turf Equip. Supply Co.). Great job gentlemen!
